WORCESTER—Over the years, Megan Dayhill's siblings made the trip from Belmont to visit the Higgins Armory Museum as part of their school studies in medieval history.

Ms. Dayhill, however, never did.

"Interestingly, she's the one who might have benefited most from a visit," said her mother, Kathy.

Megan, who loves mythology, illustrations and graphic novels, had just one more chance to visit the armor artifact museum on Barber Avenue and she wasn't going to pass up the opportunity.

So, she and her mother made the trek to Worcester Tuesday to visit the museum on its last day of operation.

"I'm so glad I came," said the 19-year-old, who is a student at the Pratt School in New York City. "I would have missed so much."

The Dayhills weren't the only ones who took time out to bid the 83-year-old museum adieu.

By midafternoon, at least 1,700 visitors had stopped by.

With two hours to closing, a line of about 75 people patiently waited in the bitter cold to get into the four-story, 42,000-square-foot landmark. With the lot jammed, parking spilled over into neighborhood streets.

In the gift shop, only a few items were left to pick through including black and white postcards, some stuffed purple dragons, and cardboard knight costumes for kids. Yet people were grabbing what they could for mementos.

"People have been streaming in and out all day," said museum spokesman Michael Masseur.

The museum was opened in 1931 by John Woodman Higgins, the industrialist who founded the former Worcester Pressed Steel company.

In recent years, the museum found itself on shaky financial ground because of its small endowment.

The facility, which had a budget of about $1.3 million this year, had been doing well attendance-wise. About 52,800 people visited in 2013.

However, museums are dependent financially on large gift-giving and revenues drawn from endowment portfolios and Higgins wasn't doing well on either aspect.

Last spring, Higgins' board decided to close and move the 2,000-piece collection to the Worcester Art Museum.

"The art museum will be a great steward," said Suzanne W. Maas, Higgin's executive director.

She said the collection would be located in the art museum's two-story library area and that a temporary exhibit is expected to open as early as March 29.

Ms. Maas, who noted that board realized its financial difficulties as far back as 2010, said there were other institutions interested but the board chose to donate the artifacts to the Worcester Art Museum because members largely wanted to keep the collection intact and in Worcester.

She said that the other institutions couldn't open up an exhibition with the collection for at least 10 years.

The Higgins Museum, with its soaring ceilings and its castle-like aesthetics, owned the largest collection in North America of armor, old arms, and related items. The second largest collection, with about 1,200 artifacts, is at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Higgins employs 29 workers, 9 of them full time.

Museum officials said the task of cataloging and moving exhibits will continue well into the new year. Ms. Maas said that it is up to the leadership at the art museum to decide how many, if any, Higgins' employees will be retained.

Meanwhile, Higgins' employees said that Tuesday was an emotional day for them. More than one likened it to an Irish wake.

The museum officially closed at 4:03 p.m. when Clarinda Higgins, the granddaughter of Mr. Higgins, ceremoniously closed the iron and glass front doors.

With tears streaming down her cheeks, Ms. Higgins, surrounded by family, thanked patrons for their support and said that the collection faced a bright future at the Worcester Art Museum.

Just before the doors were shuttered, about 300 visitors posed for a photograph in front of the museum that will be included in the future Higgins' archives.

Those who took one last look expressed sadness at the closing.

Isaac and Graham Brooks, who grew up in Spencer, remember visiting the museum many times as children.

Graham Brooks, who now lives in Vermont, had a birthday party as a child at the museum. An employee cut the cake with a sword.

"When you're a kid, you remember something like that," he said.

Isaac Brooks, who teaches at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, spent much of the afternoon filming the artifacts exhibited in the museum's Great Hall, as well as in the building's gothic nooks and crannies, with a 16 millimeter camera.

"I think our mother told us about the museum's closing and we just had to have one more look," he said.

Meanwhile, Benjamin Blout and Marit Abrams, both of Newton, said they're hopeful the Worcester Art Museum will continue the excellent management of the collection.

Mr. Blout, however, expressed concern about the art museum getting the specialized curatorial to keep the collection in good shape.

"And I just wish they made one more fundraising attempt to keep the place open," said Mr. Blout. "I heard that they needed between $15 million and $20 million to keep the armory open. In museum circles, that's chump change. I just don't understand it."

Ms. Abrams said she visited the museum every day this week. She is a member of the museum's Viking Combat Guild. "I'm really upset about the closing," she said.

Patrons said they will always remember their visit to the museum on the last day.

"I really loved it," said Kathy Dahill. "There were a variety of exhibits and they were well preserved."

Jerome and Anne Edgington of Leicester walked away with more than memories.

For $125, they purchased the steel replica knight that welcomed visitors to the gift shop.

Mrs. Edgington said the 7-foot piece would look good next to the couple's fireplace.

"This knight will provide a lifetime of conversations," said her husband, before gingerly working the unwieldy knight into the family's small Nissan hatchback.

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